Session DG51-C: Switching at Potash . . . 17:45 Once again, I'd been sent out on a loading task alone. They really ought to pay engineers double for these jobs, but that's another issue. Having learned how to open the hatches of the covered hoppers, I decided to make this task last. After driving the train to within a few yards of the loader, I stopped, walked to the last hopper, and climbed its ladder (have to be careful with this: only one of the two ladders available at the end of the hopper goes all the way to the top). Once there, I opened the hatches: From there, the job was simple, but painstaking: up the ladder, open the hatch, down the ladder ... rinse, repeat . . . all the while putting up with the repeated, nagging question: "Do you want to give up control ...?" and being careful to click on "no". Next step? load the hoppers. Since the EMD SD40-2 doesn't have a slow speed control, it's up to the engineer to meticulously balance throttle against brakes, maintaining a "speed" that never rises above 1.9 MPH. To accomplish this, I positioned the "8" camera alongside the loader: and cautiously ran the hoppers under the chute, keeping a close watch on both the train's speed and the advancing bubbles counting up from 0% to 100%: Once loading had completed, I again {oh, no!} stopped the train, climbed down from the cab {you're kidding!}, and closed all of the hoppers' hatches. Before returning to the cab, I took a last look in the dusk from the final hopper toward my engine: The rest was easy: return to the cab and drive to the final destination. I hadn't earned a lot of points or a medal, but did feel the satisfaction of a difficult Cane Creek task well completed.
Not for this session. It's only required in one activity, which involves loading 3 hoppers at the end of a long train. I just decided, as a switching devotee, to prolong the enjoyment by making the service more "immersive". Some folks like picking up and dropping off* passengers, others prefer long freight runs, still others, like myself, prefer yard activities. TS and TSW offer something for all of us. * Hopefully, I am not the only Car Talk fan on these forums! Remember "Pickup and Dropoff" the "Monback" trash haulers?